ASIN: 0895261111
Why is it that many otherwise politically correct liberals find it perfectly acceptable today to slam Christians, but not others? Publicly voiced Anti-Christian statements are no longer an aberration in our society. Rather, they are oozing to the surface with increasing frequency, and it is disturbing. Has history not shown us that public ridicule of any particular group within a society often precedes its persecution?
For those who doubt that Christ, Christians and Christianity have been designated fair game for public condemnation, consider these recent statements made just the other day by a columnist in our very own Santa Monica Daily Press:
“It did make me cry when you realize the depth of the hypocrisy and ignorance and pure evil that parades itself as devout Christianity in this … country.
“I recommend [a documentary about foster children being placed with gay couples] not as an escapist hour, but as a window into the black abyss called fundamentalist Christianity, and the culture war that is being fought by the quiet masses of unsung heroes who are just trying to live their lives.”
Regrettably, such sentiments are not unique. Numerous others have been served up for public consumption elsewhere repeatedly and often just within the last year. For example, Princeton faculty member Sean Wilentz expressed his alarm that “religious fanaticism” has “seized control of the federal government.” Ex-seminarian Garry Wills wrote in the New York Times, “Can a people that believe more fervently in the Virgin Birth than in evolution still be called an Enlightened Nation?” In The New Republic editorialist Leon Wieseltier said, “… the Bush ideal of religion [Christianity] is a zealous ignorance, a complacent renunciation of proof and evidence and logic and argument as if the techniques of reason were merely liberal tools … Not all religion in America is as superstitious and chiliastic and emotional and dogmatic and political as this. And not all religion is as Christian as this.” And, John R. MacArthur, editor of Harper’s magazine, blasted both Bush and Kerry for proclaiming “their subservience to Jesus Christ and the Christian god, without the least concern about whether it might offend me.”
First, for those Christians who do not feel these statements are directed at them because they do not consider themselves to be “fundamentalists”, think again. The defamatory statements that are being directed toward Christians today make one thing clear: those who would denigrate Christians do not make such a distinction -- many, if not most, of them define all who are Christian to be “fundamentalists”.
Next, the first question that occurs to me is why are such statements tolerated? Would not the exact same statements made about Jews, Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists or any other religious group, instead of Christianity, be universally condemned as hate speech today?
The next question then becomes what purpose is to be served by those making these remarks defaming all things Christian? Can it be for any purpose other than to work toward eventually marginalizing, if not completely removing, any influence Christians and Christianity might have upon our society? Are not such statements of hate and contempt made for the purpose of psychologically implanting in the minds of the general public the notion that Christianity should be thought of as a malignancy lurking within our society that should rightly be feared, loathed and, out of necessity, quarantined somewhere beyond some imaginary wall -- a wall that Christian haters would argue should separate not only the church from the state, but ultimately Christians from the general public as well? To properly evaluate whether the isolation and removal of Christianity may truly be their goal, consider the following statements:
“It’s a real conflict for me when I go to a concert and find out somebody
in the audience is a … fundamentalist Christian. It can cloud my enjoyment. I’d rather not know.”
-- Linda Ronstadt, San Diego Union-Tribune
“I am an atheist. I don’t understand religion at all. I’m sure I’ll offend a lot of people by saying this, but I think its all nonsense. . . . . [Christianity is the result of] a lack of education. They haven’t been exposed to what the world has to offer.”
-- Television personality and columnist Andy Rooney who, interestingly, is himself only a few heartbeats away from finding out if he is right.
“Terrorism is a tactic, not a belief. The true battle will be between modern civilization and anti-modernist; between those who believe in the primacy of the individual and those who believe that human beings owe their allegiance and identity to a higher authority . . . between those who believe in science, reason and logic, and those who believe that truth is revealed through Scripture and religious dogma. Terrorism will disrupt and destroy lives. But terrorism itself is not the greatest danger we face.” (emphasis added)
-- Robert Reich, former Clinton Administration Cabinet Secretary on why Christianity poses a greater threat to our society than terrorists.
The ultimate question then becomes are we of whom these public figures are speaking paying proper attention? If not, perhaps we should be. Again, has not history taught us that repeated public denigration of any segment of society that goes unchallenged often precedes its persecution? Consider the blame, contempt and hatred that was publicly directed toward Jews by Hitler and his minions in the decade preceding the Holocaust.
Regretfully, many Jews ignored the warnings afforded by similar hateful voices to their peril – a tragic mistake they determined subsequently would not be repeated, bringing the Anti-Defamation League into existence. Its purpose: “to stop the defamation of the Jewish people” wherever and whenever it may occur. The axiom justifying its mission: words of hate expressed today often lead to very serious and tangible adverse consequences tomorrow.
In light of the hate speech now being directed at Christians today, perhaps they would do well to consider the implications of this same axiom carefully. We may still choose to ignore the warnings now being issued by the likes of Mr. Reich, Mr. Rooney and Ms. Ronstadt … but we will at least be aware of the possibility that in the foreseeable future our decision could result in our peril. The wall beyond which those who hate Christianity would have us put that at present is only symbolic, could in time become very real ... or so at least might history suggest.
© 2005 Clifford C. Nichols, Esq.
Cliff Nichols is an attorney practicing criminal defense/entertainment law in Santa Monica, California. He may be contacted regarding this editorial at either (310) 917-1083 or www.cliffnicholslaw.com or you may join his blog at www.thedailystand.com
| Persecution: How Liberals are Waging War Against Christians ASIN: 0895261111 |
 | Their Blood Cries Out ASIN: 0849940206 |